[shimshimhada]

Originally Posted by needforspeed

I used to rig up 200 - 500watt floods and surround the car with them. The resultant glare was dangerous enough to require protective clothing to avoid third degree burns and the last time I did it the rest of the city blacked out.

However, I did notice a thumb print so it was worth it.

Now I take my car down to the particle accelerator at the atomic research establishment. They use ultra high energy x rays to illuminate the space between the sub atomic particles that make up the surface of the paint.

By bombarding these with exactly the right quantity of Higgs Bosun particles I will hopefully either:

1. End up with a really clean car
2. Create a black hole beneath the earth which will suck up the entire galaxy.


Seriously though (sorry bmw executive we should be ashamed of ourselves) when I do was my car myself (every couple of weeks or so) I probably spend about 30 mins shampooing, rinsing and cleaning the alloys with a wheel brush, then a further 30 mins waxing it with a turtle wax 'wax it wet' spray which you just wipe of with a clean chamois.

My car does 30,000 miles a year, so I have to be realistic about the condition it will get into - with stone chips, door dings and all the other horrible things that happen to cars in daily use.

Why don't you just use an acidic spray like Poorboy's Spray and Rinse on your alloys? It takes about 10 seconds that way. You can use Poorboy's Wheel Sealant or Rejex on your wheels.

[snosk8tr123]

whats this "Z" stuff?

[shimshimhada]

Originally Posted by snosk8tr123

whats this "Z" stuff?

Zaino products. www.zainostore.com

[NFS]

Originally Posted by shimshimhada

Why don't you just use an acidic spray like Poorboy's Spray and Rinse on your alloys? It takes about 10 seconds that way. You can use Poorboy's Wheel Sealant or Rejex on your wheels.

I would be the first to admit that I am generally lazy - so I have tried all manner of wheel cleaning sprays (not the brand you mention though as I haven't seen it in the UK).

Universally, they have all been a bit rubbish at removing 'baked on' brake dust.

So ... I got myself a wheel brush from Tesco's that looks like this one:

http://www.sportscarcare.com/scc/pro...emID=car-92010

Now I just clean the wheels with the brush and normal car shampoo.

Works a treat and is faster than any of the sprays I have tried.

[shimshimhada]

Originally Posted by needforspeed

I would be the first to admit that I am generally lazy - so I have tried all manner of wheel cleaning sprays (not the brand you mention though as I haven't seen it in the UK).

Universally, they have all been a bit rubbish at removing 'baked on' brake dust.

So ... I got myself a wheel brush from Tesco's that looks like this one:

http://www.sportscarcare.com/scc/pro...emID=car-92010

Now I just clean the wheels with the brush and normal car shampoo.

Works a treat and is faster than any of the sprays I have tried.

PB's Spray and Rinse is undiluted stuff. I was skeptical too, but I sprayed it on, cut 3:1 with water, and it still did an amazing job. I have a tampico long wheel brush if it's really bad, but the spray is usually good enough.

[Josh49]

Sup fellas. In the middle of the process right now. Woke up at 8 am to take a leak, saw the incredible weather, thought to myself, today is Zaino day. I've been wanting to do this for a while now, just haven't had the right time/weather. First time using Zaino. So far I have washed all wheels with Zaino Car Soap and water, washed car extremely well using Dawn, pulled it into the garage, dryed entire car. I just mixed up the lubricant they suggest to claybar the car, and am taking a quick break to let the car thoroughly dry, and eat breakfast. So far 1.75 hours. Next step after breakfast, clay the entire car.

First time using Zaino, can't wait to see the final product..

[FrankoQ]

2.5- 3.0 hours which include:
- wash with zaino car wash
- blowdry with leaf blower
- clean wheels with sponge (I use wheel wax... I love it)
- beer break
- one coat of Z8
- beer break
- clean windows
- clean interior
- vacuum
- chrome polish for front grills and exhaust tips
- Take a couple of minutes to admire the baby
- Done

[Josh49]

First coat of Z-5 is drying.

Update at 2:20.

- Claying the car was a PITA. It took a while to get used to the feel of it, once you do, it's really easy to tell when it's clean vs when it's contaminated. The biggest pain was kneading (rotating out and folding) the clay all the time. If I could buy bricks of clay I don't think I would mind this process as much. Another lesson learned, there was absolutely no point in drying the car after the Dawn wash, as you spray water/car wash solution at it to lubricate the clay. The car after the clay step is a mess. One thing I didn't like is I was under the impression you don't want to let soap dry on the car, however in this step, clay residue/soap water sits on the car a while. I pulled out the car once halfway to hose it down, this idea was bothering me. I figure I'll never clay this car again, so I wanted to do this step right..

- Washed the car again, this time with Zaino wash.

- Dried car thoroughly. It's looking pretty clean at this point, now it needs the wax.

- First layer of Z-5 down (for swirls/dark car). Waiting for it to dry. Going to eat some lunch..

Another lesson learned. The Zaino applicator pads are POS's. I bet you could get nicer ones for cheaper. These things are falling apart, getting fuzz all over.

Biggest lesson learned:
Clay Bar + Clear Bra = Big PITA!!!

[krazykanuck]

Originally Posted by Josh49

I figure I'll never clay this car again, so I wanted to do this step right

Your process looks really good, but I regularly clay bar my IS. I try to clay bar every 3 months. The last time I waxed about 2 weeks ago I didn't clay first and I could feel a big difference from when I clay bar to when I don't.

[picus]

Originally Posted by shimshimhada

PB's Spray and Rinse is undiluted stuff. I was skeptical too, but I sprayed it on, cut 3:1 with water, and it still did an amazing job. I have a tampico long wheel brush if it's really bad, but the spray is usually good enough.

Wait until you try Wheel Brightener, it makes S&R look like apple juice.

[shimshimhada]

Originally Posted by picus

Wait until you try Wheel Brightener, it makes S&R look like apple juice.

Kev, you told me it was S&R was good! I'll order some WB later. Do you do a same cut? 3:1?

[picus]

Originally Posted by shimshimhada

Kev, you told me it was S&R was good! I'll order some WB later. Do you do a same cut? 3:1?

S&R is good, it's an awesome product. WB is not a regular use product, only for super tough dust.

[The Casuist]

Three hours, once a week.

[bmwexecutive]

You guys who never wash your car should be proud of me. I just passed 3 weeks since I last washed my baby. Oddly enough, she really isn't very dirty. Probably because of all of the rains we've been having as of late. When you drive in the rain at 60MPH, it's almost like washing you car---assuming you have some fairly new coats of Zaino applied. So much sheeting and beading action.

I drove to Ybor City the other day (45 minutes on the highway) and collected quite a few bugs on the front bumper. After coming back from Barnes and Noble tonight I decided I'd wipe the bugs off the front and when I went to do so there were none. The rain today wiped them all off for me.

[NFS]

Originally Posted by bmwexecutive

You guys who never wash your car should be proud of me. I just passed 3 weeks since I last washed my baby. Oddly enough, she really isn't very dirty. Probably because of all of the rains we've been having as of late. When you drive in the rain at 60MPH, it's almost like washing you car---assuming you have some fairly new coats of Zaino applied. So much sheeting and beading action.

I drove to Ybor City the other day (45 minutes on the highway) and collected quite a few bugs on the front bumper. After coming back from Barnes and Noble tonight I decided I'd wipe the bugs off the front and when I went to do so there were none. The rain today wiped them all off for me.

The first 3 weeks of cold turkey are the hardest

Unfortunately I find that rainy weather doesn't wipe of the the brake dust on the wheels. If it weren't for that I would probably wash my car every couple of months at most.

[bmwexecutive]

Originally Posted by needforspeed

The first 3 weeks of cold turkey are the hardest

Unfortunately I find that rainy weather doesn't wipe of the the brake dust on the wheels. If it weren't for that I would probably wash my car every couple of months at most.

Haha. Yup. The rain doesn't clean the wheels, that's true. Right now my silver wheels are black. It's a new look.

I'll probably get out there tomorrow and give them all a good wipedown. Chances are I'll probably just end up washing the car tomorrow though. I think 3 1/2 weeks is long enough.

[JOYRIIDE1113]

Originally Posted by picus

S&R is good, it's an awesome product. WB is not a regular use product, only for super tough dust.

Picus, I wouldn't say SnR is any more safe than WB now. I mean, If you use SnR full strength, its still a very harsh acidic wheel cleaner, just like WB. If you find SnR safe, even at 1:1, I'm sure WB is just as safe at 4:1.

I use WB 4:1 weekly (only on the inner of my wheels). Outside wheels only get soapy water.

[JOYRIIDE1113]

Originally Posted by picus

Wait until you try Wheel Brightener, it makes S&R look like apple juice.

It does look like applejuice! WB looks like grape juice.

[picus]

Originally Posted by JOYRIIDE1113

Picus, I wouldn't say SnR is any more safe than WB now. I mean, If you use SnR full strength, its still a very harsh acidic wheel cleaner, just like WB. If you find SnR safe, even at 1:1, I'm sure WB is just as safe at 4:1.

I use WB 4:1 weekly (only on the inner of my wheels). Outside wheels only get soapy water.

Ya, I didn't really mean one was safe and one wasn't. As with anything when used correctly *anything* can be safe. I use WB on a daily basis and have never had an issue; of course I've heard of people totally messing up wheels with it. It's all about using it correctly. I personally wouldn't use WB *regularly* on any wheels (insides are ok), just because like any acid it can bleach wheels over time. Like you, I generally use good ol' soap and water to do 75% of my wheel cleaning.

I was just saying that @ 4:1 (the common dilution ratio), S&R is less acidic than WB, so it can be used more regularly without staining or bleaching.

Cheers.

[JOYRIIDE1113]

Even on BMW wheels, without sealing, you find soapy water just fine?

I ask since other than your regular details, you probably have regular wash customers as well, and some being BMW, Audis, Ect.

[picus]

I seal all the wheels I clean, so I can't really say. It's been awhile since I did a maintenance wash on wheels that weren't sealed. When I have trouble with brake dust and don't want to use acid I generally use "Amazing Roll Off", its a non-acidic non-caustic cleaner that works pretty well.

Personally I cringe at the thought of regularly cleaning Benz brake dust without sealing.

[BK]

I'm driving myself insane because I haven't washed my car in 2 weeks. Last weekend was rainy weather. I don't have a garage and I see rain drop spots all over her. Hopefully, I'll have a chance to wash her this weekend!

FWIW, I am OCD and spend hours washing my car, too. I want to get the process down to an hour, but my obsessive nature makes it difficult.